Local Storage seems to be disabled in your browser.
For the best experience on our site, be sure to turn on Local Storage in your browser.
1872 $50 South Carolina Note PMG MS68 EPQ
Taken To The Cleaners By The State Of South Carolina!
In 1872, the state of South Carolina needed around $300,000 dollars to finance the reconstruction of the Blue Ridge Railroad. That’s the equivalent of more than $6 million in today’s economy. While that was indeed a lot of money, it seemed like a win-win deal for everyone involved. After all, railroads were in their heyday and the state guaranteed repayment. All that was needed was an investor who could put up the cash.
An Investment From “The Dean Of The Speculators”
Stepping up to the plate was famed industrialist Edward Barton Wesley. One of the founders of The New York Times, Wesley was known as “The Dean of the Speculators.” For his investment of $300,000, Wesley received $1 million in collateral. The collateral? Intricately-engraved bonds designed to look like actual currency notes. Here you have a $50 note featuring a wonderful green color that shows a central portrait of George Washington between vignettes of farmer in a horse-drawn wagon on the upper left and slaves picking cotton on the lower right. Think about; George Washington on a $50 bill… amazing! The back features ornate designs around the denomination with the central message: “Issued Under an Act to Relieve the State of South Carolina of All Liability for its Guaranty of the Bonds of the Blue Ridge Railroad Company by Providing for the Securing and Destruction of the Same, March 2, 1872.”
A Good Deal Gone Bad
If everything had gone as planned, Wesley would have seen quite a return on his investment. Unfortunately, the Panic of 1873 struck triggering a depression in Europe and North America—the greatest depression in United States history until the Great Depression struck with even greater force in the 1930s. The economic calamity put a massive strain on banks, and in 1873 South Carolina reneged on its deal with Wesley, leaving him with stacks of unredeemable notes. Wesley fought the state in the courts but lost. He was left with nothing but the notes. Whether out of spite, stubbornness, or a fanciful notion that the notes would someday be worth something, Wesley carefully stored the notes away, preserved for decades as a monument to a good deal gone bad.
Crisp, Superb Gem Uncirculated Notes From The E.B. Wesley Collection
Recently when a portion of the original Wesley South Carolina Railroad Notes resurfaced, we snapped them up and we’re making them available on a first-come, first-served basis. This is your chance to obtain a $50 note graded by Paper Money Guaranty (PMG) as being in Crisp Superb Gem Uncirculated-68 Exceptional Paper Quality (CU68 EPQ) condition. These notes are miniature works of art in their own right and are profound and important historic remnants of the Gilded Age.
Due to the importance of this hoard, PMG felt it was worthy to pedigree each note with “E.B. Wesley Collection.” More than 150 years after Wesley got taken to the cleaners by the state of South Carolina, his notes are finally worth something! Quantities are extremely limited, so add one of these stunning examples of American engraving and printing to your collection today!
Availability | Out of Stock |
---|---|
Year of Issue | 1872 |
Country | United States |
Composition | Currency |
Condition | Graded |
---|---|
Grade | 68EPQ |
Denomination | 50.00 |
Currency Type | Dollar |